


Catch Me If You Can

by StarlightXNightmare



Series: Septic Egos [15]
Category: Video Blogging RPF, jacksepticeye
Genre: Anti Doesn't Play Fair (Shocker), Anti's His Own Warning, Brief Loss of Consciousness, Dangerous Stunts, Frustration, Guilt, Jackie Doesn't Know When To Give Up, Manipulation, Overworking, Parkour, Pushing Past One's Limit, Sleep Deprivation, Stabbing, Starvation, Tag, Taunts, Threats, falling, loss of temper
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-18
Updated: 2018-08-18
Packaged: 2019-06-29 02:19:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15719922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarlightXNightmare/pseuds/StarlightXNightmare
Summary: Jackie used to feel like he knew the city of Brighton like the back of his hand, however now he wasn’t so sure of that. Every shadow seemed so much more than a dark spot without light, and every abandoned building had the potential to be the place where Schneep could be. It was maddening knowing that his best friend was in trouble and he—the hero—couldn’t save him! He hasn’t felt like a hero in the whole time Schneep’s been missing.





	Catch Me If You Can

**Author's Note:**

> I love the idea of this but I hate the way I executed it.

Electric blue eyes flitted over the sparsely populated streets below him. Upon seeing no disturbances in the peace, the hero in red backed up and took off, leaping off the edge of the building’s roof and clearing the alleyway below to land safely on the roof of the next building.

Jackie used to feel like he knew the city of Brighton like the back of his hand, however now he wasn’t so sure of that. Every shadow seemed so much more than a dark spot without light, and every abandoned building had the potential to be the place where Schneep could be. It was maddening knowing that his best friend was in trouble and he— _the hero_ —couldn’t save him! He hasn’t felt like a hero in the whole time Schneep’s been missing.

Already panting with effort, the hero took a short moment to stay standing in one spot. Marvin had told him to eat before going on patrol tonight—like every night the past several nights, but this time he seemed a lot angrier about it—but once again Jackie hadn’t listened to him. Why should he be eating when Schneep is _missing?_ For all they know Schneep could be hurt and Marvin _expects him to take a break from searching and eat?_

He told himself he didn’t need food to continue doing his job—he was perfectly able to do his job without being slowed down by such a trivial thing. It was getting harder and harder to tell himself that when his stomach was growling and the occasional stab of pain was felt in his gut. Harder to tell himself that when all he wanted to do was eat. Harder to tell himself that when his vision darkened at random points in the day when he stood up or exerted a certain amount of physical energy. Maybe Marvin was right—

“͇͠W͚̅ḧ̭́a̹͂ť̬ ̳̀a͔͒ ̮̌s͉̒u͓̾r̥̂p͉͊r͎̎ị͆s̢͘é͇ ̜̽t̙͂o̜͋ ̯͆s̭̐ȅ͔ḙ͊ ͓̍y̨̌o̢̎u͈̒ ̙̉h̪e̼͗r̛̟ẽ͖,̟̈ ̺͗h͕͗é̪r̖͒õ͕!̝̽”̬̪̈́͝ A glitchy voice sneered from behind him, tone dripping with mock surprise. He could recognize that voice from anywhere...

"Anti," Jackie ground out, jaw clenching painfully tight, the muscles in his neck tensing. Keeping his back to him was a terrible idea—something that could get him gutted like a fish—but Jackie wasn't thinking too clearly. He was distracted by many things—his hatred for the man, the hunger clawing at his insides, the droop of his eyelids, the dull aching of his muscles. 

High pitched giggling. "̇ͅG̢͛o̠͂s͔͝h̡,̳͘ ̦͒m̤̃e͕̓ḙ͊r̖̋k͈̿ą͠t͚͂.̱̍ ͍̄A̡̐ ̛̺h͋ͅe̮̍ȑ͍o̢͛ ̭̾b̳̐e̤͊i͈̍n͓̒g̱̅ ̱ī̡n͌ͅ ̭̎s͇͑ũ̠c̗̓h̦̔ ̿͜a͙̐ ̭͂f̹o͖͌u͈̓l̖͐ ̰͋m̈́͜o̥͌o͙̅d̬̎?͝ͅ ͖̐W̹̚ȟ͉ḁ̊t͍́ ͙̔a̢͘ ̺̐p̺̅ö̖o͓̾r͚̆ ̡͊e͙̽x̥͐ă̠m͉̿p̣̚l̖͛e̪͒ ͉̒y̮̍o̺̽u͇͘'̲̎ȓ͇e͖̐ ̛̟s̞͘e̟̅t̬͑ṯ̓i͖̔n̓͜g̫͝ ͈̈́f͙̔o͔̐ṟ̿ ̯̎t̟̑h̯͋e̠͠ ̯̈c̳i̱̔t͙i̟z͍e̳̒n̘̿s̘̋.̞̄"̗͚̓̍

"What. Do. You. Want?"

Anti clicked his tongue. "̘͝S̗̓ṱȑ̹a̰i̠͌ǧ̝h͈͝t̼͠ ̘̕t̟͋ö̠́ ̝̽t̝̃h̠͛e̠͂ ̙̒p̯͘o̝̍ȋ̬n̪̿t̩̀.͕͐ ̪̚Ä̝́ňͅn̯͠o̐ͅy͚̐í̧n͇͂g̬̒ ̢́b͖̕u̗͌t̬͝ ̬̕a̦͝d̳̎m̜̔i̘͌r͙̒a͔͝b̯͌l̡̂e͖̓.̪͠ ͕̌F̪̓i͕͝n̝̏e̢͝.̘̈ ̙̈I̺͊ ̞̆ẁ̡a̟͌n̰̽t̠͘ ̢̍t̹̓o̥͌ ̯͆p̨̚l̗̄a̬͋ỷ̭ ̧̓ä̤́ ̮̏g̣̈́a͚͑m̝̚e̙̐.̨͘"̮̄

Jackie sighed heavily. Of course Anti wanted to play a game. He always did. "I don't have time for your games, Anti. Either fight me or go away."

"͒͜Ȳ͙o͇͝ṳ̍ ̻̉h̦̽ă̤v̟̚e͖͂ṋ́'̠̍ẗ̼ ͔͌ḙ̀v̘̎e̲͂n̼͌ ̩ḩ͆e̝̅a̛̪ȓ̪d̳͒ ͓w̓ͅh͜͝a͚͆t̖͛ ͉̃h̤̿ă̻p͚̽p͎̀ē͙n̯̏s͇̒ ̦̍i̛̖f̯̓ ͈̓ỵ̈́ö̡u̙͝ ̝̓w̖͆i̗͛n͉̽ ̧͑y͙̓e̹̓t̟͂!͉͊"̧͝ Anti whined—yes _whined_.

Jackie wanted to bash his skull into the concrete below his feet. Instead he inhaled sharply and exhaled slowly. "I don't care; leave me alone." He heard Anti give an annoyed huff behind him and hoped that it meant the other had given up.

"̝I͎̊ ͖̅t̟͋h̩͝o͎͌ṷ̂g͕͊h̜͐t͚͊ ͈̕ẙ̳ơ͕u͍͘ ̹c̨͛a̞͂r̩ẹ̈ḓ͌ ͔̄ṃ͘o̘͝ȓ͇e̲͒ ̟̏a̠͌b̧̾ö͍u͉̚ť͈ ̨̓H̛̫e̤͐n̪̾r̤̎î̻k̗ ̟̀t͔͒h͚͌a͎̿n̰̈́ ͙ṫ͙h̫̐a̖̋t͖͂.̲̽ ̭̇G̥̉u͇͑e͜s̐ͅs͙̋ ̝͒Ḯ̟ ̬͂ẉa̹̕s͎̚ ̱̇w̢̐r̙͗ö̲́n̳̄g̞̅.̤̔"̘͋

Jackie's drooping eyes snapped wide open and he whirled around. "What?"

Anti feigned innocence. "̨̋Ŵ̠h̦̐a̽͜t̥̾?͕"̜̆

"Don't play coy," the hero snapped. "What the fuck does Schneep have to do with this?"

"̥̚I͉̽f͘͜ ̛͔y͙̆o͙̒u͇̔ ̠̊h͉̕ȁ̫d͓͛ ̩̅l̢͂ḙ̅t̪̍ ͙̍ṃ̄e͍͛ ̪̈́ḛ̎x̏ͅp̥l̡͝a͓̚i͎̒n̜͌ ̠̊t͖͊h̼͝ḛ͗ṋ̐ ̬́y̘͝o̤͝ṷ̈́ ̻̄w̧͊o̲͆u̬͝l̖̅d̞̿ ̪̇k͚̾n̠̈́o̙͛w̖̉.͓̋"̱̃ The other said smugly, his seemingly permanent grin twisting upwards further.

"Answer me!" Jackie snarled. He startled both himself and Anti. He normally could keep a good grip on his emotions. Heroes didn't let their emotions get the better of them.

Anti's sadistic glee disappeared in the blink of an eye. He sighed, scuffing the ground with the front of his shoe. "̡̅Ŵ̗e̝̊l̟̊ḹ ̣̇Ì̦ ̦͋ẅ̤a̮̓s̫̾ ͈̕ǧ̖ö̜́ï͚n͖̚g̨̋ ̪̇t̠͆o͖̍ ̱͑s̟͐ạ̊y͔͠ ̫͌ť̟h̰͌ḁ̌t͎̚ ̭͂i̙͛ḟ̢ ̥͠y̝͛o̰̐ù̠ ̯ẅ̙́o̹͊ń͔ ͝ͅo̠̓u͕͠r̠̋ ͚͐l̞̇i̧̛t̟̒t̞͒l̖̉ȩ̚ ̲̕g̝̒a̱̔m̰̚ĕ̠ ̻̃t̫̚h̹̔e͔͛n̝̈ ͕̉Ĩ̘'̝̇ḍ̑ ͉́t̮́e̩̋l̦̾l͍̔ ͎̀y͉̿o̹͐u͚̿ ̙̾s͙͗õ͍m̺̈́e̳͒t̤̎h͊ͅȋ̖n͙̅g̻̊ ̮͐a̠͂b̊ͅo̝̾u̡̿t̞̑ ̜̀H̖͊e̡͛n͓r̗̀i̯̚k̞͑.̦͊ ̗̄B͗͜ȕ̹t͙͂ ͚̊s̼̍è̳e͚͠i͓͌n̢͊g̲͠ ̰͝ạ̈́ș ̜͑y͔͆o̗͗u͚̐ ̫̎d͍̋o̰͌ṇ̔'̦̈́t̲̊ ̥̀w̱͒a̻̓n̫̉t̛̘ ̮̀t̛̻ö͍ ̫͆p̮̔l͓̉a͇͗y̹̋ ̩͗ā̦ ̝̓ĝ͜ȁ͚m̑͜e̥̕,̖̓ ̬̀I̼̋ ̮͐s̬͗u͓p̯͗p̟̆o̙̅s̭͒e͎͐ ̼̕y̜̓o̧͊u͖͒ ̤͝w̥͝o̗͂n̹͝'̪̀t͔̉ ̧b̧̑e̞̓ ̟̈́g̢̾e̛̺ẗ͇́ṯ̇i̹͝n͓̽g͙̽ ̤̉t̙̀ẖ͠a̧̐ẗ̗ ̧̊i̪͋n̤̂f̼͝o̿͜r̤͌m̟͐a͈̐t͍͑i̯̐o͜͝ñ͓.̠̉"͇͆ He sounded dejected, hurt that the hero had refused to play his game as if he weren't holding information about a missing person dear to Jackie.

Anti's words made his heart stutter and his mind go blank. If it had been anyone else who was telling him this then Jackie wouldn't have listened to them—hell he might've even but this was Anti. Anti was a type of demon who was completely unable to lie. If he couldn't lie then that meant he'd actually give Jackie information about Schneep if he won. Jackie was snapped out of his thoughts when he saw Anti turn, the demon clearly intending to leave. He could already feel that he was going to regret this.

"Hey, wait! What's the game?"

Anti turned around again, head cocked to an inhuman angle. He blinked owlishly before a sly grin crept across his face. "̗͂Ö́͜h̰̓?̬͝ ̧̅C͖͊h̗̿a̿ͅn̻̔g͇̐e̪͑d̞͠ ̦̿ý̰o̹u̙̍r̹̒ ͍͑m͙̉í͓n̫̑d͚͛,̱̀ ̗͋h̥̑e͖̎r̘̔ò̲?̨͊"͎̂

A deep inhale, fists clenched. "Yes... I changed my mind. I want to play your game."

Anti's grin only widened, revealing sharp teeth that appeared too large for his mouth. "̈́͜Ẇ͈ö̦́n͙̄d͎̓è̟r̡̒f͓͊u̻͐l̰̈́!͕̾ ̺͘L̘̽e̺̓t̢̋'̼̏s̬̔ ̱̈́s̯̎t̠̿a̗͂r̠̎t̺̾!̡̅"̡̆ He turned, moving to bolt, stopping when Jackie called out to him.

"Hey! What are we even playing? Are there any rules I should know about?" Anti took his games pretty seriously. Rulebreakers weren't tolerated, even if you didn't know you broke a rule. If he accidentally broke a rule, he wouldn't be able to win and he'd have entertained all Anti's nonsense for nothing. Besides Anti was notorious for not notifying the players of his rules—better to be safe than sorry.

"̫́N̾͜o̭̓p̨̛e̪̔,͕͌ ̳͊n̠͝o̖̔ ̣̍r̰̉u̠͋l̡͆é̹s̭̉!̛̝"͆ͅ He exclaimed giddily. A sly smirk crawled across his face. "̜̔A͋͜l͎͑l̖̊ ̬̄y͓͑ő̻u̦̎ ͓̌h̤̊a̰̓v̯͋e̻͋ ̛͎ṭ̽o̰̓ ̻̎d̨̆ö͉́ ̝̿i̧̅ş̍.̣͛.͙̔.̥̔ ̼͠c̹a̼͋ť̘c̱̚h̘ ̬̓m̥̚e̯͗ ̱i̯͛f̪̂ ͙̈́y͈͒ȏ͙u̧̓ ̠̀c̳̈a̤̓n̝̏.̨̾"̰̣̑ The outline of his body grew fuzzy before he glitched out of existence, appearing on the next rooftop over.

Jackie took off after Anti, sprinting full speed across the roof, jumping up onto the ledge of the building and pushing off, soaring over the alleyway below and landing with bended knees on the next. He rolled for a moment, falling forward over his knees and somersaulting forward, using his arms to throw himself back up onto his feet. The action most likely would bring bruises blooming up everywhere and shave some skin off but _it didn't matter_. All that mattered was catching Anti.

The glitch stayed ahead of the hero for the whole time, leaping from rooftop to rooftop, cackling his broken laugh. Sometimes he'd let the hero get tantalizingly close only to glitch away to another rooftop, laughter doubling when he heard Jackie scream in frustration. The leaps the demon made across rooves were dangerous, often leaping too early or too late to try and throw the hero off.

Jackie wasn't sure when the stitch in his side started but soon it was escalating to a burning, stabbing pain flaring up every time he sucked in another breath. He wasn't sure when his lungs seemed to start shriveling up either, his deep breaths becoming quick, shallow pants. Every muscle in his body was wound up too tight, to the point where it hurt all over.

It didn't matter though. He was _so_ close.

He pushed himself harder, ignoring the black spots growing in his vision until his sight was practically tunneling. Ignoring the unbearable pain in his lungs. Ignoring how lightheaded he felt. He couldn't let the pain get to him—couldn't let himself feel the pain. His sights were set solely on the demon ahead of him, demanding his body tune out the discomfort and pain he was feeling.

He close enough to Anti now, if he just outstretched his fingers then he could snag—

Anti glitched to the roof next door and Jackie was thrown off guard. He barely bounded up onto the ledge in time, boot falling over the edge a little too far to correct in the heat of the moment. His weight launched him forward, his jump thrown off kilter by the overreach. Fingertips barely catching on the opposite ledge, boots scrabbling on brick, gravity dragged him down, his full weight bringing his fingers off the ledge. The panicked kicking at the wall pushed him back slightly, his fall going from his legs to his back. A brief feeling of weightlessness overtook his body as he fell, eyes widening before his back collided harshly with something metal, harsh clanging and some feeble structure groaning in protest, head snapping back with the mov—

* * *

A burning punch hit his abdomen, urging him to curl in on himself with a weak groan, hands moving to cover the pain up.

"͙̚W̘̒h̦̆e̙͑n̼̈ ̝̊Ĭ̦ ̊͜s͕͝å̧i͕͂d̙͊ ̤͗n͈͆o͎̽ ̤̿r̦͘u͔̓l̠̏ȅ̤s̳,̨̌ ̹̏Ǐ͈ ̜̚d͚̈i͉̐d̦́n͕̓'̇͜t̻̉ ͔͐m̰͗e̞͒a̡͐ǹ̩ ̛͖̹͉͉̏̇͋f̩̺̜̄͘͝a͔̘̓̉͝ͅl̬̣̜͌́̕l̝͈̃̑͝ͅ ̥̮̣̓̂̓a͉̟̩̾͑͠s̥͙̳̓̊̇l̛̖̫̗͗e̬̱͎̎͋͑e͙͓̣̐̓̒p̞̖̥̏̕̕ ̟̄i̯̍n̟̽ ̣̐ț͑h̘̓ë̥ ̮̋m̢̌i̤d͚d͕̅l̙̽ē͚ ̪͊o͓f̬͛ ̤̋ó͉u͛ͅr̦̓ ͖͝ğ̰å̰m̪̒e̞̓,̭̇"͇̍ a voice hissed angrily in his ear, something pulling sharply on his hair.

Jackie's eyes cracked open, a pained moan escaping his lips. It felt like cotton had been shoved into his mouth. "Wha...?"

"̦̿Y͙̎o̧̽u͔͑ ͈̍l̠̒o̯͝s̃ͅt̢̃ ̺̍o̮̎ǘ̱r̾ͅ ̺̆g͚̃ą̿m̯͝ě̗,̱ ̫̉J͈̽a͉̾ĉ̻k̥ḭ̔e̙̎.̦͝ ̖͘Y͉͠o͇̍ų̉ ͍̋w͍͂o͓̿ǹ̰'͚̓t̬̃ ͖͝f͚̿ĩ̺n̒͜d͜ ̼̍o͚͘u͓͐t̹ ̦̈́a̰͐n̠̈́y̮͛t͙̆h͉̎i̞̊n̛̝g͔̈́ ̜̚a͕̎b̼͋o͚͌ų͒ṱ̅ ̯͌y̩̔o̞u̧͝r̢̀ ̼̂p̱ṟ͑e͘͜c̹̄i̧̚ò̱u̟͌s̹̆ ̡̕d̢͒ơ̫c͉̕ẗ̨o̮͊r̰͌ ͔̕n̛̥o͔̿ẅ̢ ̪̋t̠͘h̄ͅa̧͝t̪͛ ̪͒y͓͘ǒͅȗ̖'̜͛v̧̈́e̥͝ ̠̓f͓u̞͋c̩̅k͙̏e̞̓d̳̕ ͚͂i̩͒ṯ̅ ͙̉ű̖p̼̏.̟͘.̛͍.̬͑ ͎ą͘n̻̔ḑ̉ ̝̾i̞f̮͝ ̱̎y̙̔ȏ̗ṷ̈ ̪͛d̦͗o̹̓n̙͌'͈̋ṫ̟ ̹h̳́ù͍r̭̄r͕̾y͎̿,̡͑ ͔͒ÿ͓́o͎̔ủ͉ ̫̄m͖̃ỉͅḡ̣h̒͜ṭ͊ ͉̈l͓͛ó̘s̭̿e̠̕ ̘̍m̢̈o̢͠ṛ̕ë̝ ̖͐ț̄h̜ȧ͜n̏ͅ ̞͖̇̋j̢̗̅͝u͙̭͘s̘̦͆t̙̬̃͝ ̰̒t̯h̺̎ḝ ̫̈g̘͝a͎͌m̍ͅe̛͔.͔̇"̼̃ The pressure on his scalp disappeared, leaving a stinging aftermath.

Memories trickled back slowly to his foggy mind, prompting the hero to struggle to open his eyes fully. It took longer than he'd like to admit for him to piece together what had happened. He had fallen a decent enough height down onto the fire escape, knocking his head after slamming his back into the metal ground. What caught his attention and drew them away from his muddled thoughts was a wet warmth spreading from a spot on his gut, sharp pain lingering.

Anti was perched on the barrier of the fire escape, twirling his knife absentmindedly between his fingers. "̖̭̿͊İ͉͉͊f̘͈̃̆ ͍̖̽̎y͕̳͝o̭̞̎̕u̼͙̔͛ ̪̻̋̐f̹̙͆̏e̯̼͌̏e̛̞̮̊l̜̲̈͋ ͕͍̄l͓̗͐̕ĭ͈̞̓k̢̪͋͝ĕ͕̖̚ ̢͔̈́̏ȧ̩͈̚ ̧̛̃ͅr͔̜̍̔è̬͚̃d̹̉̚ͅḛ̻̽͘m͇̹̃̄p̳̬̃͝ẗ̡̝́͋i̖̿̇ͅo̡̪͌̋n͇̺͒̽ ̘̻̓͘r͔͍̊u̖͓͛n̤͔̄͠ ̦͔͋̀t̩͚͗͒h̪̗̚ḛ̜͑̈ņ̻̔͝ ̙͊͌ͅm̡̯̿̑à̦̘̓y̺̦̎͝b̭̲͗e̖̹̅̊ ̱̫̈́̚y͔̲̌̄ö̠̻́͠u̘͘͝ͅ ̟͈͌͘c̯͔͋́ǫ͚̊͘n͈̍͠ͅt̞͍̆͐ì̝̚͜n̞͑͝ͅų̧̽̃i̬̙͛͠ṉ͎̊̒g̤͙̍̓ ͔̺̓̽ở̼͚u̢̒̚͜r̠̯̊͝ ̧̺̈͝ġ͔̰̑ả̝̖m͇͚̈͝ë͙̰́̆ ̲̣̊͝w̙̾̓͜o͉̻̿̏u̘͙͑̄ļ͖̋̈́d̪͓̑̈́ ͕̎́͜c̜̳̔͌o̯͆̕͜n̬̼͋̃v̻̫̏̄i̛͇͊ͅṇ͎̉̈́c̤̾̉ͅḛ̟͐̑ ̛̹̮ḿ̺̫̈́e̜̙͐̔.̫̮̊"̪̳̓ He glitched away, peering over the ledge of the building Jackie had failed to reach.

It took a great amount of effort and whines of pain but Jackie pushed himself onto his feet, hand pressed weakly over his stab wound. Limbs shook from exhaustion, back screaming in pain as he pulled himself onto the barrier of the fire escape, balancing precariously before removing his hand from the wound and grabbing feebly at the window ledge high above him.

After an embarrassingly long time scaling a mere ten feet—a feat that would've been easy before—Jackie hauled himself over the edge of the building with trembling arms. He was huffing heavily, eyes lidded in exhaustion. His vision still had black dots dancing but it was clear that Anti was no longer waiting for him to arrive—or maybe he hadn't been waiting at all. He had left.

Jackie couldn't help but double over in exhaustion, a hand digging into his wound to prevent any further blood loss with the other resting on one of his knees as he drew in long, ragged breaths. He felt his frustration triple and his guilt from that night only grew tenfold.

Anti was gone and so was any chance to find out about Schneep.

**Author's Note:**

> So sorry this is garbage. I'm rushing to finish this and this thing has been sitting in my drafts for several weeks. I may go back and change it later. Who knows? Definitely not me.


End file.
